The funk house was a good hostel, it was cheap and our double room was perfect for what we needed. We didn't realize that Kings Cross was the red light district of sydney! getting to town meant passing lots of scantily clothed women so its not for families with young kids. It was right beside the train station and about half an hour walk to the center. The hop on hop off bus goes from right outside the hostel though, the night life is good, lots of bars and restaurants around and staff were excellent, so helpful and full of ideas! I would go again and recommend it if you don't mind being surrounded by gentlemens clubs.

I stayed at the Funk House nearly six years ago, so things may have altered since then. Me and friend stayed here when we first arrived in Australia for a year of backpacking. We stayed in the Funk House for seven weeks and I enjoyed every moment of it.
The hostel staff were friendly/helpful and all the guests I spoke to were very friendly and welcoming.
Athough the area may have a bad reputation, I felt safe at all times and never felt threatened.
There was a lot of partying and noise, so if your looking for a quiet night then this is not the place to stay. If you are looking for some fun and to meet like minded partying backpackers, then this it the place for you!

My friends and I were expecting poor things after reading reviews on the web, so with low expectations we arrived in Sydney and gave the hostel a call. Within 10mins a free bus service was provided and we were given a warm welcome on arrival (good start). The hostel is in a busy part of town with the odd dodgy character around at night, but nothing out of the norm for a large city. The rooms were indeed quite small, not sparkling clean but not dirty either. With the 3 of us then we had been given a 3 bed dorm so it was perfect for us, I wouldn't however want to share such a room with randomn people, but thats just me. We only used the kitchen for some free toast the one morning but there are plenty of cheap places to eat out all around the hostel. All in all with the free beer vouchers, fantastic location, friendly service and a relaxed atmosphere proved perfect for 3 mates on a low budget weekend in sydney.

Stayed at Funk House for 7 nights in June/July 2008. As an 18 year old solo traveller, I have stayed in many hostels across Europe, Oz and NZ. This was the worst hostel I have been to. Staff were rude and unhelpful. Other guests were long-term residents, who spent all day on the roof smokin weed. The noise through the night was unbearable. I'm not a prudent person and enjoy parties and the odd drink but 4:30am, you just wanna sleep! Kings Cross is a really dodgy area, lots of strip joints and "characters" standing around. Room was small but comfortable. Shared bathroom facilities were okay, nice showers but the toilets were filthy. Cheap enough, but certainly not recommended, unless you are in Sydney to drink and get high all night and sleep all day.